Go to the Ghost of Nonfiction

[PV] susquatch - Ghost

A song off the relatively recently released full-length album "In This World" by the indie rock band susquatch. It's their first full-length, but the band already shows an incredible amount of depth in their music. Blending the musicality of post-rock/shoegaze and the airy and reflective tone in their vocals ultimately creates a sound that reminds me of other post-emo bands such as the defunct Bluebeard. So, if that tips your fancy, I recommend checking them out.

Yeah, a bunch has happened since my last entry. So much so, that I'm not fully confident that I can tell all of it properly in the limited amount of time I have to make this entry. (Technically, I'm supposed to be working on my final papers/midterm I still haven't handed in yet. But you know how that went obviously.) Anyways, I've gone to two different concerts since the last post. I'll start with seeing lostage on the finale of their tour for the recently released album "GO".

I'm not going to lie, lostage was pretty average to me. CLUB QUATTRO was a pretty nifty venue. The sound was pretty nicely set-up. The only complaint I have in regard to the venue is that the drink menu leaves something to be desired. I ended up going with a couple of kids from my program and, don't get me wrong, a good time was had by all. But, even though lostage played a lot of the songs that I liked from their recent releases such as "SUNDAY" and "Bonyuu", something felt missing from the performance. Then, I realized what it was.

Most of the songs that lostage ended up playing were from "DRAMA" onwards. I spend a good portion of the show, waiting/hoping for the band to push back a little further and perhaps play a song like "TELEVISION CITY" or to even a song like "DIG", which would be quite fun and energy-filled. But, it never happened. This ended up making the whole performance sound really..."same"-y. I mean, there were cool moments like bassist/vocalist Gomi Takahisa doing some stage diving. But, overall, the hard-hitting energy that drew me to lostage in the first place seemed absent. I mean, I guess I should have seen it coming, seeing as even though "GO" had some really nice tunes, it wasn't really all that hard-hitting either. Oh, by the way, I totally witnessed other gaijin besides me and my friends at this particular show. And, one of them totally took pictures of the band on stage with her cellphone. (In Japan, in most cases, you're not allowed to take pictures at live shows.) Needless to say, I was pretty peeved that she was doing it, getting away with it, and that I had no chance in hell to get away with it if I tried. Being Asian in a predominately Asian country can really suck sometimes.

Okay, onto Base Ball Bear at their show dubbed "Hibiya Nonfiction". I actually was kind of really late to this show, just making it in time before it started. But, I have to say that even though I didn't really have time to enjoy the view of the park so much as I was running to the venue, Hibiya Park is really nice. If you didn't know, the live took place at the Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall, which is in the middle of Hibiya Park. Well, I eventually made it and I have to say it was ridiculously packed. This shouldn't have come to that much of a surprise, seeing as how Base Ball Bear is the most famous band (at least in Japan) that I've seen during my time here. But, I kind of wish I had made it there earlier so I could have gotten a better view. Either way, I've definitely never seen so many Japanese people doing the whole "synchronized pointing" thing at once. The band went through most of their hit songs and some older ones such as "YUME is VISION". They also played some new songs. (As in unreleased songs.) It was definitely fun to see them live. I was also able to get a view gifts for friends back home. Unfortunately, I decided to leave just a little early, so as to make it back at a reasonable time. So, I only was able to catch up to the second encore, which was pretty cool. Ended with "Matsuri no Ato".

Anyways, thus ends my experience with concerts in Japan. It has definitely been a pretty cool experience going to shows here. It should make for a good final paper for my Popular Culture class. (That's right, I'm writing about all this stuff for an academic paper. Kickass.) Hard to believe I only have about 2 weeks left here. But, it should be a fun time, at least after all my work is done. God only knows when that is going to happen.

-REG

SURRENDER my free time

[PV] lostage - SURRENDER

Now I present a song from the latest album of lostage known as "GO". Sounds like a typical fare from them, complete with ghostly vocals, airy melodic guitar riffs, and pretty solid drumming. Seems like their stuff has been leaning more and more towards this exact kind of soft yet foreboding sound since the days of "PLAY WITH ISOLATION". Maybe they're finding their musical "niche" so to speak or maybe their signing with major label Toy's Factory has something to do with it. Either way, if you like the song, I do recommend checking them out.

Okay, so lots of things have been happening since I last posted. I did end up going to Akihabara with Dobby. We mainly just explored the place, but we did end up visiting and eating at a maid cafe. I have to say that it was even more interesting/fun/awkward than I had thought beforehand. The both of us got a combo meal that came with a picture with the maid that served us. And by picture, I mean getting up on a stage in the middle of the establishment in front of all the other customers and doing cute poses with the maid while wearing things such as cat ears. Needless to say, you can imagine how crazy it is. I mean, we even had to repeat a cute chant with our maid as she served our drinks and food. Again, interesting/fun/awkward.

Not much has happened since then. I have noticed that my legs are getting ridiculously sore the past couple of days. I guess that means I've been doing an equally ridiculous amount of walking, which doesn't really surprise me I guess.

-REG

P.S. I took my placement test today. I did well.

P.P.S. April Fools! I didn't do so well. :(